Recipes: Smoked salmon and pink peppercorn pâté | Black pepper gingerbread

Claire Macdonald

Both my husband Godfrey and I love black pepper and eat an inordinate amount of it, yet the pink and green peppercorns taste so different, and both are useful in several recipes. But there is no doubt about it – black peppercorns have a far wider use, mainly with savoury foods, but also, especially at this time of year, in cakes, puddings and gingerbreads. Black pepper is a valuable spice used with all dried fruits and while I know that some people like eating black pepper on strawberries, for me, this is a waste of time – and of pepper and strawberries too.

As with all spices, freshly ground black pepper is a world apart from ready-ground. Pink and green peppercorns are usually bought preserved whole, in brine, though dried pink peppercorns can be bought (usually from good healthfood shops) which I use in pastry, for tarts with fillings such as caramelised onions, or leeks.

One of the best sauces in my repertoire contains green peppercorns. And I learnt, many years ago, at Fishers in Leith, having eaten an extremely good fish soup which contained pink peppercorns, just how well they can enhance all types of fish and shellfish.

I realise I haven’t mentioned white peppercorns. For me, they are only useful for sauces where flecks of black pepper would dent the visual appeal.

Peppercorns - Black, Red and Green

I once saw peppercorns growing in the botanical gardens in Kandy, Sri Lanka, and I found this fascinating - partly because pepper was a commodity that I took for granted. Both my husband Godfrey and I love black pepper and eat an inordinate amount of it, yet the pink and green peppercorns taste so different, and both are useful in several recipes. But there is no doubt about it - black peppercorns have a far wider use, mainly with savoury foods, but also, especially at this time of year, in cakes and puddings and gingerbreads - black pepper is a valuable spice used with all dried fruits. I know that some people like eating black pepper on strawberries, but for me, this is a waste of time - and of pepper and strawberries too.

As with all spices, freshly ground black pepper is a world apart from bought ready-ground. But pink and green peppercorns are usually bought preserved whole, in brine. And pink peppercorns can be bought (usually from good healthfood shops) dried, and I use dried pink peppercorns in pastry, for tarts with fillings such as caramelised onions, or leeks. One of the best sauces in my repertoire contains green peppercorns. And I learnt, many years ago, at Fishers in Leith, having eaten an extremely good fish soup which contained pink peppercorns, just how well these small ingredients can enhance all types of fish and shellfish.

I realise that I haven’t mentioned the fourth colour of peppercorn, white. But for me, white pepper is for use in sauces where tiny flecks of black pepper would dent the visual appeal, and only then.

Smoked Salmon and Pink Peppercorn Pate

I serve this with the small Nairn’s oatcakes, as a substantial canapé when I am not serving a first course.

Serves 6

8oz/225g smoked salmon

8oz/225g low-fat Philadelphia cream cheese

finely grated rind of half a lemon and the juice of half a lemon

about 10 grinds of black pepper

2 teaspoons horseradish relish

2 teaspoons pink peppercorns, drained of their brine

1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley

Put the smoked salmon and Philadelphia cream cheese into the food processor with the grated lemon rind and whiz till smooth. Then add the lemon juice, black pepper and horseradish and whiz in. Scrape this mixture from the processor into a bowl, and mix in the pink peppercorns and finely chopped parsley.

Serve in a bowl on an ashet, with small heaps of Nairn’s oatcakes surrounding the bowl, and with some small knives for your guests to help themselves.

Alternatively, you can spread a good dollop of the pate on the oatcakes and arrange them on an ashet or serving plate.

Port, Ginger and Green Peppercorn Sauce

This is one of the best sauces for serving with roast venison fillet, or with beef fillet, or with roast duck.

Serves 6

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

¼ pint/135ml red wine vinegar

½ pint/275ml chicken stock - I use a good stock substitute, eg Marigold powder

½ pint/275ml port

2in/5cms root ginger, skinned and very finely diced

2 fat cloves of garlic, skinned and diced finely

6oz/170g butter, cut into 6 bits

3 teaspoons green peppercorns, drained of their brine

Put the sugar and vinegar into a saucepan over moderate heat. Stir, until every grain of sugar has dissolved, then boil fast until the vinegar reduces right down and you have a vinegar caramel in the base of the pan.

Pour in the stock and port - there will be a whoosh of steam - and add the ginger and garlic. Simmer gently until the amount has reduced by half, then, with the pan off the heat, whisk in the butter, a piece at a time, whisking until all the butter is incorporated and you have a glossy sauce. Add the drained green peppercorns and keep the sauce warm - do not let it boil - until you are ready to serve it. A thermos is ideal for keeping this and other sauces warm.

Black Pepper Gingerbread

This freezes very well, and it can be eaten cold, as a cake, or warm, with egg vanilla custard or with creme fraiche, as a pudding.

4oz/113g self-raising flour sieved with

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

a pinch of ground cloves

a good grating of nutmeg

½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1 large egg

4oz/113g soft light or dark brown sugar

3 tablespoons black treacle - dip a tablespoon into very hot water before each spoonful

¼ pint/135ml milk

2oz/56g butter melted

grated rind of 1 orange

1 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper

6 pieces of ginger, drained of their preserving syrup, and chopped finely

3oz/85g fat raisins

Put the flour and spices and bicarbonate of soda into a bowl. Beat in the egg, sugar, milk, treacle and melted butter, and the grated orange rind and black pepper. Mix in the chopped ginger and raisins, mixing very well.

Base line a non-stick cake tin, about 9in diameter (22cms) with a disc of baking parchment. Put the gingerbread mixture into this, and smooth the surface even. Bake in a moderate heat, 350F/180C/Gas Mark 4 for 30-35 minutes - when you stick a knife in the centre it should emerge slightly sticky. If it is coated with raw mixture, give the gingerbread a further 10 minutes’ cooking time.

Maddeningly, in this recipe the ginger and raisins seem to inevitably sit on the base of the baked gingerbread! But the taste is very good.

ENDS